Ariele's #3 Blog Post: Image or Video

In my other COR class; Exploring the "Arab Spring" the professor put up a link that was focused on Syrian violence leading into the Lebanon area.  This article and image was found on www.vice.com and was then later put up on to my other class blog.  The image that goes along with the article that is titled, "On the Lam in Lebanon; Syria's Violence Bleeds Over the Border. features men in cars with guns going over the bordering and certainly posing as a threat.  I feel as if the image from the article is relevant to our class because we just finished watching a movie about men who were present in the Lebanon war and how dangerous it truly was.  Also, the image raises questions about how Lebanon is going to handle Syrian violence coming into their territory.


http://www.vice.com/read/on-the-lam-in-lebanon-0000345-v19n11

Iraq war ten years later

http://www.cnn.com/interactive/2013/03/world/iraq-anniversary/index.html?hpt=hp_inthenews

This CNN article is very interesting because it looks at the war from the viewpoint of military personal and their families, iraqis, newsmakers, CNN & the media, as well as readers voices who shared their thoughts. The war is Iraq lasted much longer than anyone anticipated and the reason why we went to war has been controversial as no weapons of mass destruction were found. The wars official end came December 31, 2001 but thousands of lives have been changed since then.

I found it interesting how one soldier talked about how he was deployed to Balad in Iraq back in 2011 when Obama announced the troops were leaving Iraq early. He talked about how every day he had less supplies like food, water, equipment, and even communication. Everything was getting shipped off, and he was on the second to last flight out of Balad, Iraq.

An Iraqi women in the Kurdish controlled northern area also brought up interesting points. She talked about how Saddam oppressed her people for so long, and how thankful she was that America took him out of power. She thanked America for ending his dictatorship, and allowing her to live a new life without fear.

Qatar's Workers and the World Cup

http://www.hurriyetdailynews.com/criticism-drives-qatar-to-draft-workers-code.aspx?pageID=238&nID=41313&NewsCatID=364

This article talks about changes Qatar is making to their treatment of foreign workers. At present, Qatar is a nation that does not treat its working class with any sort of dignity or respect. They are paid low wages, are subjected to numerous human rights violations, and are generally treated as disposable company property. The system is very cruel for these workers, but very profitable for native Qataris, who make an average $690,000 annually. The workers are only allowed into Qatar for 5-year intervals, preventing a worker's uprising, and native Qataris are also the beneficiaries of lavish government social spending to keep them happy.

But as effective as this system is for the people in power, it looks like it might be changing. Qatar also wants to be an international player, and has secured the rights to host the World Cup in 2022. But with this international attention comes great scrutiny for Qatar's mistreatment of its foreign workers, on whom the nation will be reliant to produce all the extra infrastructure needed for the tournament. It will be interesting to look at how Qatar complies with calls for it to stop its human rights violations, and how it balances its own self-interest with the demands of new potential allies.

Iran nuclear weapon over a year away, says Obama

So what's scarier then a neighbor that doesn't like you that is developing nuclear weapons? One that you know will be done soon. Recently, United States President Barack Obama has told an Israeli television channel it would take Iran "over a year or so" to develop a nuclear weapon. In an interview, he said he did not want to "cut it too close" and declined to rule out the possibility of military action.
While Tehran insists it is refining uranium only for peaceful energy purposes, it's rather clear what their inteded goal is. So Iran's nuclear program is expected to be high on the agenda when President Obama when he visits Israel later this month.

"... our goal here is to make sure that Iran does not possess a nuclear weapon that could threaten Israel or could trigger an arms race in the region. That would be extraordinarily dangerous at a time when obviously there are already a lot of things going on" stated President Obama when asked about the situation.

For all the trouble the Middle East has seen in the past, none is more serious then a potential nuclear arms race. Tension between the various factions and issue within the region have been the cause much strife, but this is on another level. Not only could it decimate the region, but could lead to outside military intervention on the same scale (nuclear). This could cause a chain reaction of unthinkable repercussions.


http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-middle-east-21791105

Propaganda

https://encrypted-tbn1.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcQ3g4HcJnlje5HP5KjPlOxxXIYjauJX1-y7QcW_eWFU7EvwkJg8BA

I found this image online while doing research for the next paper. I have been very interested in different forms of propaganda in the Middle East, and a lot of what i’ve found depicts the abuse of Palestine. In the picture that I have linked it’s the United States and Israel calling the man from Palestine an anti-Semite. This piece is pretty powerful, because it shows the U.S. taking the side of Israel when the states are saying they want a two state system. Every image i’ve seen about this issue has been extremely anti Palestinian. I don’t see why. You can even say this image is anti Israel and U.S. in the sense that they are the abusers in this situation, and the Palestinian man is being abused. You could make the argument that the U.S. doesn’t know what to do about the situation, and isn’t really helping by getting involved. It’s just like the analogy that was used in class; this is a conflict between two grandparents and the grandson is trying to break it up and has no idea how to do it. In an ideal world it would be nice to see this conflict get resolved especially with the recent World Bank restraints on Palestine. With the sheer might of Israel over Palestine I don’t see this conflict getting resolved any time soon. 

Syria Deploys All-Female Units

The title of the news article that I found is called, Syria, pressed by war, deploys all-female units. This article was written by Liz Sly and published on March 11, 2013.

They Syrian government is now training and arming women to fight for President Bashar al-Assad and sending them out on the front lines. The women are being trained to use grenades and Kalashnikovs which are heavy machine guns. The all-female force is named "Lionesses for National Defense", and was put into place to supplement the army with a National Defense Force militia made up of civilian volunteers. The duties of the women are confined to checkpoint control, but rebel attacks on the posts are a frequent occurrence. This is not the first time that women have served in Syria's military. There is a video dating back to the 1980's showing female soldiers at a military parade in front of Assad's father and predecessor, President Hafez al-Assad.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/world/middle_east/syria-pressed-by-war-deploys-all-female-unit/2013/01/25/303d1d76-6722-11e2-93e1-475791032daf_story.html

Syrian Refugee Crisis

Video Link - The Economist - Syrian Refugee Crisis

I found this video on the Syrian refugee crisis from the Economist, a trusted online and published source for news all over the world. It is essentially detailing how many refugees are within and outside of Syria as a result of the Syrian civil war that is currently taking place. They are living in camps in the surrounding countries of: Turkey, Lebanon, Egypt, Jordan and Iraq. The video mentions the particular trouble for Lebanon because of the type of government they have (which we discussed in class) and because their country's forces are spread particularly thin right now. Each country is the home to many new refugees, all of them are currently housing over 10,000. Turkey, Lebanon and Jordan are currently housing over 100,000. There are also a large amount of citizen's still within Syria who have been displaced and are moving from town to town to avoid the fighting. This evokes a lot of questions relevant to our course: How is Lebanon's government going to handle another refugee population very similar to the Palestinian one many years ago? What position will the United States take and as a superpower will they intervene in the fighting? How long will the government of Turkey, the United Nations and UNHCR be able to provide for these displaced people? Was the Arab Spring really a turning point or did it just make things worse for the vast majority of Syrians?

Convicted Terrorist Plotting Murders from Prison

I read this article off of CNN and it is about a man name Hysen Sherifi, who was convicted in 2011, trying to set up a hit on a key witness that sent him to prison in the first place. I found this interesting because it is crazy to think that we need to be on the look out from terrorism at all times. This terrorist still almost pulled off a terrorist act even though he was in jail...in AMERICA!
It brings the sense of realism to America. There are people out there that will kill for no reason and we always need to be prepared. It makes me safe knowing that there are new security measures being taken  since 2001 that will ultimately help to find these types of people.
I think that this also gives a good example that terrorism is anywhere you go and it can happen at anytime. The world is not what it use to be like and even though its a tough reality to face -- we need to come to terms with it before something like this will happen.

Here is the link:

http://security.blogs.cnn.com/2012/11/08/convicted-terrorist-guilty-of-plotting-murder-for-hire-from-behind-bars/

This relates to our class because currently we are learning about war, identity and how handling a situation can make a simple event turn drastic. This man is fighting for something that he believes in, just like Palestine is fighting to become a recognized state with boarders. Just like Palistine, this terrorist will never fully achieve his goal because he will be spending the rest of his life behind bars.

-Mike McDonough

Iran plans 'to sue Hollywood' over film

I'm not sure if this has been mentioned in our class or blog yet but I found this article both interesting and relevant to our class. The article states "Iran is planning to sue Hollywood over the Oscar-winning film "Argo" because of the movie's alleged "unrealistic portrayal" of the country, Iranian media have reported."

The decision on the lawsuit came after a group of Iranian cultural officials and movie critics screened the film in a closed audience in a Tehran theatre late on Monday. We will be able to block distributors of the movie, force them to apologize and challenge them to confess that the movie is nothing but a sheer lie," the lawyer told semi-official Mehr news agency.

This comes a few months after Iran announced that they are boycotting the 2013 Oscars over the Innocence of Muslims film released in the US. (http://www.guardian.co.uk/film/2012/sep/25/iran-boycott-oscars-2013)

Article:
http://www.aljazeera.com/news/middleeast/2013/03/2013312225936196889.html
http://www.rawstory.com/rs/2013/03/13/iran-to-sue-hollywood-over-argo-and-other-oscar-films/

VICE: The Israeli-Palestinian Arms Race

VICE: The Israeli-Palestinian Arms Race


part 1: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yFsQJrWwrK8

part 2: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x4z9leyXEPA

This two part documentary by VICE delves deeper into the arms race between the evicted Palestinians and the armed-to-the-teeth Israelis. They focus a majority of the documentary to demonstrating the imbalance in weaponry between the two states. Each side is in a constant state of flux between missile attacks and other acts of aggression and momentary cease-fires that usually don't last more than a few days. Each side tends to blame the other for initiating the attack, but when you see the difference in casualties it becomes hard to believe why the Palestinians would want to try to tackle such a powerful juggernaut. A good example of the imbalance between the two nations is Israel's newly implemented Iron Dome anti-missile defense system. This system covers a majority of Israel and can automatically detect and neutralize missiles in a matter of seconds. The most disturbing part of this story is how the Israelis are so comfortable and confident in their nations abilities that they often ignore sirens and other warnings as well as watch in awe while missiles sent by the Palestinians are being obliterated in mid-air.

Tunisia Khedri: Young man dies after self-immolation

Adel Khedhri, age 27, set himself alight on Tuesday on a street in central Tunis, the focus of protests which toppled long-time leader Zine al-Abidine Ben Ali two years ago. He died "as a result of severe burns" a doctor said. His death came hours before parliament approved the new government make-up.

Witnesses say Mr Khedhri shouted: "This is a young man who sells cigarettes because of unemployment," before setting himself on fire on the steps of the municipal theatre on Habib Bourguiba Avenue, on Tuesday. Since Mohamed Bouazizi set himself on fire in December 2010, there has been a spate of such protests in Tunisia but most of those involved are thought to have survived their injuries. This is one of the few recorded events where the victim died.

While one can focus on the various events within the more known sections of the Middle East, areas like Tunis are still experiencing revolts and uprisings from it's people. While Tunisia may not be as well known as Palestine or Egypt, the same acts are being preformed there.



http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-africa-21767594

Ex-Marine Detained in Iran

The family of a former U.S. Marine detained in Iran for 19 months is pleading for his release. Amir Hekmati, 29, was arrested in August of 2011 while visiting his grandmother in Tehran. He was convicted of spying for the CIA, even though his family and the United States deny such claims. Hekmati was first sentenced to death, but a higher court nullified the penalty in March 2012 and sent the case to another court. At this time, he remains in solitary confinement with little access to a lawyer or family visits.

His family hopes to have him freed before the Iranian New Year later this month; an occasion where the supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khanmenei, often pardons non-violent prisoners.  His brother-in-law, Ramy Kurdi stated, "We understand there is no mercy shown to prisoners and they're often released. That's our plea as well... we're worried about his mental, physical and emotional well-being."

This is certainly not the only case where U.S. citizens were taken hostage and detained in Iran.  After the 1979 Islamic revolution, Iranian students took 52 U.S. diplomats hostage, and more recently in 2009, three U.S. citizens were arrested during a hike, and accused of spying for the U.S. government. I can only imagine how Hekmati's family must be feeling right now, and I hope that their plea to the Iranian government is answered sooner than later.


http://www.reuters.com/article/2013/03/13/us-iran-usa-hekmati-idUSBRE92C09420130313

Argo Under Legal Attack in Iran

The recently released movie Argo has caught some flak in Iran. The movie is currently banned in Iran because it depicts Iran in a negative limelight and is considered “anti-Iran propaganda.” While this type of reaction is certainly expected to come from Iran, what is unexpected though is that they are now attempting to “sue Hollywood”. The only action they have taken so far is hiring a famous french attorney. What they plan on doing is looking for some kind of legal action that they could take and who to take it on.

What makes this interesting is that they are looking towards legal action rather than looking towards other routes. Also if they are somehow able to succeed in any of this, then what kind of impact would this have on future films? What Iran does within its own borders when it comes to censorship is up to them, but as the article suggests they want more. What they are asking is for people to stop distribution of the film and a formal apology from creators. In a sense what they are asking for is a type of global censorship of the movie.

I personally do not think this has any chance of succeeding. I believe it is even doubtful that they will get a response from the film creators. What it potentially shows is that Iran wishes to extend their censorship beyond its own borders and more on a global scale.

source: http://www.aljazeera.com/news/middleeast/2013/03/2013312225936196889.html

At the present the World Bank seems to have stepped up in the Israel/ Palestine conflict. Reports given by the World Bank state that Israeli forces are holding up transactions by the Palestinians which is causing lasting damage. Obviously the Israelis know they are doing something but who knows if it is just another thing to plague the people to get them to leave; or perhaps this is part of a broader plan to show that the Palestinian state will not be able to thrive no matter what. There is no easy way to tell for sure but if it can be noticed by the World Bank that definitely means Israel should know about it.

Potentially forcing a tough economy can destroy the country. We have seen what happens when there is economic collapse in countries, and in this case the state of Palestine isn't in good shape regardless. We will have to keep watching to see if the World Bank or the U.N. can do anything further or if Israel themselves just stop.

http://www.aljazeera.com/news/middleeast/2013/03/201331214612693225.html

Syrian Civil War:Increasingly Dismal

The Syrian Civil War has clearly been a prominent event in the world recently. Throughout this conflict horrendous and questionable actions have been taken by both sides. However, I was led to believe that the rebels were thoroughly justified in their opposition to their government. For decades the Syrian government has tightly controlled what Syrian citizens could do as well as information/media etc. they could access.  This lack of freedom is a reoccurring recipe for uprising in the world.  Despite the injustices inflicted upon the citizens by the government, both sides have allegedly crossed the invisible moral and civil line. An article currently on the CNN website has shared information about a report made by U.N. investigators in Syria. According to this source both side are using children to assist their efforts in this violent situation. Apparently, children have been used by both sides as informants as well as exposed to the threat of death if caught. The death toll of this recent conflict is around 70,000 and increasing with no solution to the conflict in sight. Despite being a lifelong American, I have always thought that civil wars are usually not the business of outside parties. This clearly makes the ongoing conflict in Syria an example of an event that needs outside intervention. With the preceding passage in mind: What steps can/should be taken to attempt to diffuse the violence? Is an end to violence in Syria possible in the next year? 5 years?

http://www.cnn.com/2013/03/12/world/meast/syria-civil-war/index.html?hpt=wo_c2

Long Lasting and Complicated Situation in Mali

Since early 2012, Mali has been an extremely interesting, complicated, and unpredictable country in the Middle East that many are having a hard time wrapping their heads around. From Islamic radicals rebelling against their own government and Al Queda moving in seeking a new region to HQ their operations, to French military moving in to aid and recover what they once controlled, conflict has been non-stop for months on end. While the story is abstract and complex right now, it will only continue on this path as the conflict becomes resolved and Malians try to recover what little is left of their government, or rebuild it from the bottom up.

Food security and a large amount of displaced citizens are at the top of the "To-Do" list for most Malians, but they are not making much headway without a strong government to back them up. While the United Nations are intervening and trying to help out, they do not believe that the groups in Mali who are taking charge and trying to rebuild are not allowing them to truly help. Director for West Africa of the International Crisis Group stated that "Malian elites do not seem ready to confront collectively. They should be able to agree on a minimum [criteria to restore governance] and right now the conditions for such a debate are not met." This notion that even factions of the UN thing that the situation is still a little too hairy is a clear signal that a true end to the conflict is far out of sight.

This article is great at explaining what some of the overhanging problems are present in re-establishing a government in Mali. For one, Mali has never had an election for any sort of democratic government, which will surely be internationally enforced. Mali was rushed into setting up a government outside of French control and has had little time, in respect to other nations, to develop that government. Another huge issue that needs to be dealt with is the reformation of Mali's military. The Malian army was taken over by Islamist Rebels and Al Queda linked groups, who still hold a significant amount of power in the area. All parties considered, this isn't going away any time soon.

http://www.irinnews.org/Report/97633/How-to-tackle-Mali-s-crisis-in-the-long-term

Dispute over Gaza Strike

The article I chose to read and write about is about the dispute involving a strike on a mans house in Gava. In November there was some hostilities between Israel and Palestinians in the Gaza Strip. During  these a number of Palestinian civilians were killed. Among these, a mans house was hit killing his 11 month old son. The initial finding was that it was an Israeli airstrike that hit his house and killed his son. This naturally caused evenmore tension between the Israelis and the Palestinians. However, after carrying out an investigation of the incident, the UN recently disputed this idea stating that they believe that it was a misfired Palestinian missile that hit the mans house. An Israeli Military Spokesperson commented how, when the fighting first began, no one knew everything that was happening and it would have been impossible to keep track of all the fighting. Palestinians have commented that if it was indeed their missile they would openly take the blame and acknowledge it.

I chose this article because I feel it does a good job of showing why conflict is not the right answer for these two groups. It has gotten to the point where neither group is sure of what happened and if they are responsible or not. In addition it continues to claim the lives of innocent civilians (such as the 11 month old son) which just creates more strife and hard feelings. When it comes to the point when both sides can't account for their actions, it shows that violence is not the answer and will never get anything done. This article does a good job of showing this in a very personal fashion.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/magazine-21749527

New Jerusalem highway threatens Arabs' homes

 A new Israeli highway project now underway in Jerusalem which may add to tensions as it is cutting through the middle class Arab neighborhood of of Beit Safafa, linking a large bloc of illegal Jewish settlements to the city. City officials state that the highway is for everyone, but not everyone is in favor of this new construction.


Aviv Tatarski of Ir Amim, an organization that lobbies for equitable treatment of Jews and Arabs in Jerusalem, states that "[the highway] changes the geography and demography in ways that will make a two-state solution very, very difficult.” The highway project is four kilometers long and will complete a north-south route across the city.

This new construction is not unusual in Jerusalem as Israelis have been nonstop building in occupied east Jerusalem, the section of the city lived in by Palestinians. This new highway, while it is not favored by the Palestinians, will "link two of Israel's most contentious roads, allowing Israeli Jews living in the southern West Bank to zip into Jerusalem and to the coastal city of Tel Aviv with barely a stop."

This article is a great example of the oppression that the Palestinians face whilst living under Israeli governance. Even though there are residents lobbying against the new construction to municipal officials, and organizing protests, and even petitioning Israel's Supreme Court with alternatives (Ex: move the highway underground), officials stated that "they could not hold up infrastructure development while waiting for a resolution to the decades-old Mideast conflict." While this argument does hold ground due to the fact that there is no resolution in the foreseeable future, this argument does not allow the opposition a fair hearing.

If Aviv Tatarski is correct in his statement that "[the highway] ... will make a two-state solution very, very difficult", these construction efforts may be Israels attempt to squash the two state solution permanently.

http://www.aljazeera.com/news/middleeast/2013/03/2013311183038506211.html

US threatens sanctions against Pakistan if deal with Iran goes forward

Michael Eaton

http://www.ibtimes.co.uk/articles/445011/20130312/iran-pakistan-oil-gas-pipeline-washington-tehran.htm


The possibility of a multi billion dollar deal between Iran and Pakistan over natural gas has prompted the white house to threaten sanctions against Pakistan. The Iran Sanctions Act, as it is called, could be put into effect, if the deal goes through.

The Act allows the US to impose a ban on any non-American company that invests more than $20 million in Iranian oil recourses.

Iran clames that the pipelines being completed will aid the peace process in the region and help foster a better relationship between the two countries. It will also help Pakistan, a country in desperate need of energy, to help out its neighbor in need, (due to other sanctions)

However, Washington thinks that this is taking Pakistan, "in the wrong direction" away from the US. Even with the added peace and cooperation between the two countries with this pipeline, it is not a good enough reason for most in Washington trying to keep Iran under control.

Personally I think both sides have an argument, but at the end of the day, if it will help keep peace in the region, then we should just let the project go through. It might help Iran, but there are bigger issues to be adressed, not only in that region, but elsewhere in the world.

First rocket fired from Gaza into Israel since November cease-fire

The cease fire between Palestine and Israel is over. Palestine fired a rocket into southern Israel on February 26^th as a response to the death of a Palestinian prisoner. For some time, Palestine has been requesting a review of the conditions of the Israeli prisons.  These requests have been ignored.  To raise awareness about this issue, Palestine warned that if a Palestinian died while imprisoned, the cease fire will be over. While it is unclear (from the article) exactly how the 30-year old Arafat Jaradat died, what is clear is that Palestine fired a rocket into southern Israel on Tuesday, March 5, ending a three-month cease fire between the Israel and Palestine.

On the preceding Sunday, the Palestinians informed U.S. President Obama of their intentions.  The Al Aqsa Martyrs Brigades took responsibility for the attack. To reduce the possibility of retaliation and an escalation, President Obama will speak to the Israelis and hopefully to encourage them to release the Palestinian prisoners. Tension between Palestine and Israel had subsided thanks to the efforts of the U.S. and Egypt who brokered a cease fire in November.  This article connects to our course as it further illustrates the fragile nature of peace in the Middle East and how the conflict between erupt at any time.  This article provides an understanding of life in Gaza and how conflict is part of a way of life between Israel and Palestine.

-Katie Juhl

http://www.cnn.com/2013/02/26/world/meast/israel-gaza-rocket/index.html?hpt=wo_bn8